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United States Patent | 5,653,245 |
Beard ,   et al. | August 5, 1997 |
This invention provides tobacco expansion processes and apparatus that can be employed for expanding tobacco at rapid throughput rates employing high pressure tobacco impregnation conditions. The processes and apparatus of the invention are particularly useful in tobacco expansion processes employing cycle times of less than 20-30 seconds; the use of preheated, prepressurized expansion agent such as propane; preheating of tobacco batches; and/or compression of tobacco within a high pressure impregnation zone for greatly improving use of available space in a high pressure impregnation vessel.
Inventors: | Beard; Hoyt S. (Winston-Salem, NC); Conrad; Lucas J. (Winston-Salem, NC); Crook; J. Edward (Winston-Salem, NC); Lovette; James E. (Winston-Salem, NC); Johnson; Robert Calvin (Advance, NC); Newton; Donald A. (Winston-Salem, NC); Neshan; Hamid (Houston, TX) |
Assignee: | R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (Winston-Salem, NC) |
Appl. No.: | 550413 |
Filed: | October 30, 1995 |
Current U.S. Class: | 131/291; 60/659; 122/35; 126/273.5; 131/290; 131/296 |
Intern'l Class: | A24B 003/18 |
Field of Search: | 131/291,296,290,293 122/35,36,37 124/273.5 |
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Foreign Patent Documents | |||
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"Breathing New Life Into Tobacco Expansion"; Tobacco International, Mar. 1, 1993. |